Peggy Cooley, 48, from suburban Libertyville is sharing the story of her cancer diagnosis to raise awareness of an unexpected sign of breast cancer.
“I never would have thought in a million years that a dimple would have led me here,” Cooley said.
It was around this time last year, one of Cooley’s friends invited her to a pop-up party based on the hit Netflix show, “Bridgerton.”
After a night of dressing up, Cooley returned home and changed out of her dress and push-up bra.
“I noticed something was not right in my breast. And I thought it was just from the, you know, push-up bra that I was wearing, and after a few days it was still there,” Cooley said.
Peggy called her doctor and was soon diagnosed with breast cancer.
“It looked like a dent or like a dimple, and you know, who would have thought that a dimple would be a sign of breast cancer,” Cooley said.
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Health experts say there are other symptoms to be aware of as well.
“With your breast, it could be nipple discharge. It could be the redness. It could be redness that comes and goes. It could be more prominent veins. It could be so many different things, that if something just doesn't look right to you, get it checked,” said Colleen Larson, a radiation oncology nurse navigator at Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville.
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Larsen worked with Cooley and encouraged her to join a support group, that Cooley says has helped tremendously as she continues to recover from reconstructive surgery.
“Just as much as your ongoing care with radiation or chemo or whatever that is, having a support group of peers within your community that, that know how you feel without even saying it, is so important,” Cooley said.
